Reading Time: 3 minutes For decades, ranchers from the east have brought their livestock to California, where mild winters and lush natural pastures created prime conditions for fattening beef cattle. No more. In the midst of the worst California drought in decades, the grass is stunted and some creeks are dry. Ranchers in the Golden State are loading tens […] Read more
Drought sends California cattle to Texas
The beef industry in the U.S. is becoming increasingly mobile as cattle move large distances to feeding and slaughter
PEDv disrupts U.S. trade more than expected, USDA official says
Des Moines | Reuters –– The impact of a deadly pig virus on U.S. trade is mounting, with 11 countries limiting imports of live hogs and one banning pork imports, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s top veterinarian said Wednesday. El Salvador, Guatemala and South Africa have banned imports of live U.S. hogs following the discovery […] Read more
Source of U.S. PEDv outbreak may never be learned: CVO
Chicago | Reuters — Investigators may never determine how a highly contagious virus that has killed an estimated 10 per cent of U.S. pigs entered the country for the first time last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s top veterinarian said Monday. The porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) has wiped out an estimated seven million […] Read more
PEDv re-infects U.S. farm, fuels supply fears
Chicago | Reuters — An Indiana farm has become the first to confirm publicly it suffered a second outbreak of a deadly pig virus, fueling concerns that a disease that has wiped out 10 per cent of the U.S. hog population will be harder to contain than producers and veterinarians expected. The farm, through its […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat extends rally for fourth day; soybeans climb
Chicago | Reuters –– U.S. wheat futures touched their highest level in more than a week on Friday as escalating tensions in Ukraine heightened fears of supply disruptions and forecasts for drier-than-expected weather fueled concerns about crop damage in the U.S. Plains. Soybean and soybean meal futures rallied on chart-based buying and fears about tightening […] Read more
CME Group overhauls daily grain price limits
Chicago | Reuters — CME Group Inc., the world’s largest futures market operator, said Tuesday it will overhaul the system for setting daily price limits for U.S. grain and oilseed futures to reflect fluctuations in crop prices. Starting on May 1, CME, owner of the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and other exchanges, will apply […] Read more
U.S. grains: Corn rises on planting delays; soybeans sink
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures jumped on Tuesday as concerns about slow planting progress helped fuel a rebound from sharp losses the previous session, while soybean futures tumbled on increased imports into the U.S. Weather took centre stage for the corn market as traders worried rains may prevent farmers from making progress in […] Read more
U.S. grains: Markets sink on improved weather, fund selling
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell the most in more than a year on Monday as rains expected in the drought-stricken U.S. Plains raised hopes for the upcoming harvest. Improved weather also pressured corn and soybean futures amid projections for accelerated plantings in the U.S. Midwest. Technical and fund selling helped drive losses […] Read more
USDA seen considering mandatory reports of PEDv outbreaks
Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. government is considering rules that would require outbreaks of a deadly pig virus to be reported to the government in an effort to improve tracking of the disease, which has already spread to 30 states, an industry group said Monday. Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) has killed millions of […] Read more
CME Group trading outage exposes weakened trading floor
Chicago | Reuters — Open-outcry traders sprang into action during an electronic trading halt in CME Group agricultural markets on Tuesday, but a better solution to the outage would have been to close the pits down too, traders and investors said a day later. In chaos following the outage on CME’s electronic Globex platform, some […] Read more